Motion parameters, such as acceleration, angular velocity, and a variety of derivative performance metrics, may be utilized in the training and evaluation of athletes, the rehabilitation of injured human patients, and in various recreational activities, including but not limited to both professional and nonprofessional sports. In many sports, such as bowling, tennis, golf, baseball, cricket, table tennis, badminton, basketball and soccer, athletic motions may be decomposed into a series of specific activities, the beginning and end of which can be segmented by specific detectable events. For example, in bowling detectable events include the beginning of the backswing, the end of the backswing or equivalently the beginning of the forward swing, and the end of the forward swing or equivalently ball release from the hand. Using wearable motion sensors integrated into a convenient form factor, motion data can be acquired during play and input into activity recognition algorithms that automatically segment the data into activities, calculate performance metrics on the activity segments, and provide the user/athlete with measurable feedback that will help them improve performance and become more consistent over time.
While the goal of this invention is to provide a system and method by which motion parameters for a bowling shot may be measured, analyzed and compared, resulting in an improvement in a bowler's performance when such comparative information is applied to subsequent bowling shots, it is anticipated that the system and method are applicable not only to a wide range of sports where motion parameters are critical, but also in other areas where it would be beneficial to a person to be able to analyze and compare motion parameters to improve physical performance.